Richard A. Smith stepped down from the positions of President and Chief Executive Officer of FelCor Lodging Trust. Troy A. Pentecost, chief operating officer, has moved into the positions of president and interim senior executive officer. Smith, who also resigned from the Dallas-based hospitality REIT’s board of directors, will remain in a non-executive role through the end of the year.

“Now is the time to begin the process of selecting a new chief executive who can best lead the company through the next phase of its growth and development,” said Christopher J. Hartung, FelCor’s lead independent director. He added that Pentecost’s hospitality industry experience, combined with his tenure at FelCor, made him the logical choice to head the company’s operations and execute its strategies until a permanent CEO is found.